41

ABRM41

CHARLOTTE

I opened my eyes again and found myself wrapped around his body. I was practically on top of Ben's tall figure. He had one of his hands buried in my long locks, massaging my scalp ever so gently. While with the other one, he was stroking my back gently. I looked up at his face, and earned a soft peck on my forehead. “Did you sleep well, my love?” Benjamin asked in a soft voice.

“Yes!” I replied, smiling widely. He wrapped his arms around me and kissed my forehead again. As if he couldn't keep his hands and lips off of me.

“You know, you are the most beautiful thing that ever happened to me.” Benjamin whispered in my ear. His words were laced with so much love, I could barely hold my tears at bay. I just buried my face in his chest.

“Are you sore, Tinkerbell?” He whispered softly and my cheeks burned.

“What else to expect. A little.” I was annoyed. He was treating me as if I was a kid.

“Don't feel offended, my love. I must care for you afterwards. That's all. Do you want to go back to sleep or would you like to have a hot soak?” I looked up at him, stretching my arms lazily.

“I want to sleep again.” I replied, my eyelids were heavier. He didn't ask anything else. He just readjusted the comforter that covered our naked bodies. His warmth felt so heavenly.

“Then close your eyes and go back to sleep, Tinkerbell.” He whispered in my ear.

“Are we not gonna be late if I fall asleep again?” I asked, worried about my son.

“You don't have to worry about anything at all. You're supposed to enjoy everything and I'm supposed to do all the hard work. Now go back to sleep.” He whispered softly in my ear. His hands were back, doing their job.

I didn't argue anymore. I just closed my eyes and let him give me all that princess treatment yet again. Soon enough, I could only hear his calmly beating heart underneath me and the soft rhythm of his breaths that matched mine.

When I opened my eyes again, I frowned in confusion. We were no longer in the hotel. I was still lying on top of Benjamin's tall figure. “Are you awake?” He whispered when I started moving too much.

“Are we back on the plane?” I asked, curiously looking around.

“Yep!” Was all that he said in response.

“You didn't wake me up, Ben.” I whispered, trying to sit up on his lap. Benjamin tightened his hold around my neck. I whimpered when he suddenly pulled my face so close to his, I could see every shade of ocean blue in his eyes.

My cheeks burned when I could taste his minty breaths, mixed with a hint of alcohol, in my mouth. He didn't let me sit up. He pulled me back to his chest and kissed my forehead.

“This trip was supposed to be only for you. I wanted you to relax while I let you have anything you wanted. I was here for all the hard work. Besides, I know you never wanted to leave Charlie behind. So I made sure we are back in the air before it's too late. We'll be home by dinner.” Benjamin whispered softly in my ear. I pulled the duvet off of my body and smiled widely.

He wasn't joking when he said he did all the hard work for me. He cleaned me up somehow and made me wear a comfy dress. It was one of the dresses he had chosen for me at the mall. Those efforts were becoming the reason why I wanted to actually stay with him. I still had time to think more but I was already nearing my decision.

He was not bluffing when he claimed that he still loved me and he had changed himself just for me. He was no longer the arrogant man I married all those years ago. He was gentler, more passionate and very possessive about me. I aso relaxed in his arms and rested my head back on his chest.

Our hearts were beating together in the same rhythm. The silence lingered in between us. After a while, Benjamin sat up on the bed and I ended up sitting on his thing that had started growing beneath me, poking my ass. I deliberately wiggled my ass a little, making him growl in frustration.

“I thought you were done when we hit the sixth round. Yet, you carried me and my luggage all the way to the hotel, to the plane.” I asked curiously. It earned me a chuckle then he placed a soft kiss on my forehead.

“I had help with the luggage. You, on the other hand, I love to carry you in my arms. You belong to me.” He whispered softly in my ear while brushing the tips of his fingers against the cylinder of my neck. Every single touch was different after we had finally consummated our marriage.

I buried my face in the crock of his neck. His scent was as calming as always. Silence was no longer heavy in between us. “What are you thinking about, love? Let me hear your thoughts. I want to know everything I can about you.” He whispered softly in my ear while caressing my cheek with the pad of his thumb.

I took a deep breath then looked up at his face, to meet his gaze. “I was thinking about my future.” I replied, calmly playing with the curls on his chest.

“What about your future? I am your future, aren't I?” He asked, and his words were laced with nervousness.

Since he usually played with me, I decided to play with him as well. Well, that's not decided yet. I still have tome to think it all through. You gave me six months, didn't you. You promise not to rush my decision.”

The moment he heard my response, I saw his eyes dulling instantly. “But…” I interrupted the train of his sad thoughts, pulling his attention back up me.

“Since I have already left the Stewart's law firm, I need to think about my career, right? Since I am here, I want to continue with my career. I can't just leave it. I have worked way too hard for it.” I added, to change the topic. I wanted him to be a little feisty about my answer, but his sad face made me regret teasing him.

“Join my company. Work with me as my legal adviser.” Benjamin suggested as he intertwined his fingers with mine. It was his way of telling me that I belonged to him.

“I will pay you twice the amount you were getting at Stewart's law firm.” He added and I almost rolled my eyes at him.

“Ben! It's not about money. It never was. I want to work to create something of my own. I never cared about money.” I replied calmly, not trying to ruin both his mood or the moment. And for some reason, he suddenly went silent when he heard that.

After a moment, I looked up at him and found him lost in his thoughts. I didn't know why he looked so extremely cute. I cupped his face with one hand and kissed his cheek. “True! Besides, you being my legal adviser, I'll be mostly fucking you in the office instead of focusing on my work. It's better we stay separate while working.” He replied after a few minutes and I was literally laughing so hard. He joined me too, burying his face on the crock of my neck and pulling me even closer.

“You keep on laughing like that. Please, I want you to be happy with me. What I did to you in the past, I want you to forget all about it when you are with me.” His eyes were slightly dull and his voice cracked when he said those words. He wanted me to be happy but he still felt guilty.

In my mind, I was certain that I was never leaving him. But I couldn't just tell him that. I wanted him to recover from the disease he was fighting with. I planned on telling him once he would have beaten the cancer. And until then, I would be by his side to support him.

“I am happy, Babe. You don't need to wet your eyes anymore. We both let out gates fuck us up. We didn't try to fight. We didn't try to stay. Deep down, I knew I had ways to calm you down. But in the heat of the moment, I was angry too.” I whispered, trying to lighten up the mood. He forced a small smile on his face and nodded his head. I knew he was not satisfied. He wanted me to blame him more for everything.

“Anyways! You're changing the topic of my career. I want ideas. Since I left Stewart's law firm, there is no one else who can give me the package they gave me. The main reason I joined them was their reputation.” I tried to change the topic because I no longer wanted us both to be sad in this relationship.

“Then why don't you go for district attorney's office?” My eyes literally popped out of their sockets when I heard him.

“District attorney! Are you kidding me?” I asked, laughing at his idea but for some reason, he looked serious.

“No, Tinkerbell! I'm serious. You're damn good at what you do. I spent millions to win that case you fought against the step-richards brother. But you were able to win that case with a mere theory that you proved on the court. You are a born genius. Of course you don't want money. I know that. Otherwise, you would have studied business and taken over both your father's and mother's businesses.” With wide eyes, I stared at him as he spoke.

He was practically constantly praising me. It felt amazing as always to hear my spouse speak so highly of me. As if I had earned the whole world. “Believe me when I say this, you can actually nail it. In fact, I heard yesterday, the district attorney's office has an opening for an assistant. Why don't you just give it a shot?” And there it was. His priceless belief in me.

“Alright alright! I'll contact them tomorrow. Geez.” I spoke after a while when he couldn't stop talking about how great I was at my job. Giggling, he flopped us over. He pinned me down against the bed and kissed me passionately. It was his way to reclaim my soul.

…

It was dinner time when we finally landed in Toronto. After an hour drive back home, I was too tired to even try to eat anything. I just wanted to go back to bed. We entered the villa and heard Charlie laughing. As soon as he saw us, he stood up and ran straight to me.

“Mama, you're home.” He squealed in happiness, wrapping his arms around me tightly. I hugged him back.

“Good evening, Mr Leblanc.” I greeted my father in law. Benjamin was quick to wrap one of his arms around my waist.

“Oh, please! Don't be so formal. We are family. Call me Albert, or father, like Ben.” Albert spoke as he walked toward us. I offered him a small smile and nodded my head.

“Your son, pure genius. I can't remember when was the last time I had this much fun.” I giggled when I heard Albert excitedly talking about charlie.

“Mama! We went fishing. It was so much fun. Grandpa taught me everything. And I caught so many fishes. Then grandpa took me for ice cream. It was fun.” I giggled when I heard my son being excited about the day he spent with his grandfather.

“I am glad you were able to have a good time with your Grandpa.” I replied, ruffling his perfectly styled hair.

“Mama! Don't touch my hair. You'll ruin them.” Benjamin and I laughed together when Charlie acted exactly how Ben used to be when we were young. I looked at him with a raised brow. Benjamin had a proud smirk on his face.

“I can't wait to spend more time with you very soon, son. You are actually more fun than your father when he was your age.” I giggled again, as I couldn't help myself. I was seeing something I used to picture about our future. I never would have imagined it would come true one day.

“What do you say, are you free this Saturday? I have a gold match with my friends. I am sure you're gonna like it.” Albert asked Charlie and I already knew how excited he would be at that point. Unlike his father, Charlie's interests were similar to Albert.

“Mama?” Charlie was so excited, but he only wanted me to understand, instead of asking it out loud.

“Of course, you can go. He is your grandfather.” It was Benjamin who answered Charlie. Charlie's eyes turned to me again and I nodded my head with a smile on my face.

“Awesome! I love golf. I will go with you. But I don't know how to play. Will you teach me, grandpa?” It was a dream come true, watching my baby actually behaving like a child.

My separate life matured him so much. It killed me to see him smiling widely whenever I had to leave him with nana whenever I had to go away for work. He never said anything. He never asked me for anything. Seeing him all excited like a child, brought tears to my eyes.

I turned to Benjamin and quickly wiped my tears. I didn't want Charlie to see me cry. “Of course! I'll teach you. I am so glad to hear that you like golf, instead of squash and Polo, like your father.” Albert excitedly exclaimed and I giggled.

“It's late! I must get going now. I'll pick you up tomorrow after school. Be ready. We will go shopping. You will need your own golf set.” Albert added, patting Charlie's shoulder.

“Thank you for looking after him, Albert. I really appreciate it.” Albert looked at me then waved his hand.

“Not at all. It's the best time I have had in years. So thank you.” I nodded my head at his response.

Albert left with his driver. “I am gonna hit the bed. I have a presentation tomorrow.” Charlie spoke while yawning as he walked away from us.

Once we were left alone, Benjamin scooped me up on his arms and I quickly wrapped my arms around his waist. “I can hit it one last time before going to bed! What do you say?” Benjamin asked me, his face buried in the crock of my neck.